Very interesting list from the New York Times.
They asked celebrities to name their top 10 films of the 21st century, and compiled a list of the top 100.
Unbelievably, “Parasite” is number 1.
The list tells some kind of story about culture and the Times. Like every newspaper and magazine list, there are glaring omissions.
Can it be considered a valid survey?
There are just four Black films: “Get Out,” “Moonlight,” “Black Panther” (way down at 97), and “12 Years a Slave.”
No films made by Spike Lee — “BlacKKKlansman,” “25th Hour,” and “Inside Man” are all missing. So are “Selma,” “Training Day,” “Fruitvale Station,” and “American Fiction.”
So are all of Woody Allen’s films including three classics: “Midnight in Paris,” “Vicki Cristina Barcelona,” and “Blue Jasmine.”
There’s no mention of the Oscar winning films from Miramax and The Weinstein Company. No “The King’s Speech,” “The Artist,” or “Chicago.” However, Quentin Tarantino’s “Inglourious Basterds” is there, along with “Amelie” and “Carol.” But great films like “Chocolat,” “The Cider House Rules,” and so on are omitted. I wonder why?
There’s one movie each from Steven Spielberg (“Minority Report”) and Pedro Almodovar (“Volver”).
Nothing with Meryl Streep is included. She’s considered our Best Actress, but “The Iron Lady” — for which she won an Oscar, “Doubt,” and “The Devil Wears Prada” — register no mentions.
And what about Oscar winning Best Pictures? Some are there. But along with “The King’s Speech,” “Chicago,” and “The Artist,” other MIA Best Pictures include “A Beautiful Mind,” “Crash,” and “American Beauty.” “Slumdog Millionaire” is absent, so are the three “Lord of the Rings” movies, “Argo,” and “Birdman.”
